I went in to this book knowing very little of the Mai Bhago, a Sikh woman warrior from the 1700s, and came away with a wonderful impression of her as a woman, a warrior, and a representative of the Sikh culture.

She's portrayed in this book as Bhag Khar who is born into a traditional patriarchal setup, but is drawn to a world so far exclusive to men, that of a soldier. Acknowledging her talent in the field, her father trains her as a warrior. She keeps up her training as she grows up from a teenager to a woman, and gets married all the while her community keeps losing men to the violence of war.

She ultimately leads men to battle, and this is where the story truly comes into its own--we get to examine war, death, and loss in very intimate terms. It ends on a note of inspiration, and while that was impressive, I also found myself greedily absorbing much of the setting. The daily life for a Sikh woman in Punjab of the 1700s is vividly described, and will transport you.

Pick this up if you liked beautiful language, evocative settings and characters you can root for.

Honestly, this book has an interesting historical story. I could feel the story was well progressing from start to finish. The main character Named Mai Bhago was energetically displayed. Being a female warrior wasn't an easy thing for Mai Bhago, especially the opposition came from her own father. But her stubbornness, fighting spirit and desperation were ingrained in her soul to against the oppression of her Guru and minority of her people.

On the other side, I felt a bit distracted due to there were so much Hindi language and local culture sometimes I didn't understand. Nor did the history exposed much The Emperor of Aurangzeb as the enemy that the war atmosphere was less to feel.

However, it was a pretty good story about ambition, struggles in war, kismet in the family, love, grief and sacrifice. Those things fascinated me and this story deserves good appreciation.

While I found the writing style a bit to simplistic at times for a YA novel, its so important that we tell stories of the Sikh women that contributed to our history (when they are so often left out of the discussion) that I'm more than willing to let that slide.

Do you know of Mai Bhago, a valiant Sikh warrior?

My goal is to highlight and decolonise Islamic history, but it will only be objective if I also raise points in history when ethnicities, minorities and people of other faiths were persecuted in the hands of Muslim empires.

While the battles between Sikhs and the Mughal Empire have been reduced to a religious discourse today, it can't be ignored that whether with political nuances or otherwise, the vulnerable Sikh community at the time were persecuted.

Lioness of Punjab by Anita Kharbanda @anita_kharbanda_78 is a YA biography of Mai Bhago, a revered Sikh hero and devout woman who grew up dreaming of being a warrior. Mai Bhago was more interested in learning how to fight and wield a sword than the domestic duties expected of her. She believed her "dharam" (religion) was more than only being a housewife/looking after family.

Overcoming all odds, Mai Bhago rallied the 40 Sikhs (Chali Mukte) who abandoned Guru Gobind Singh during the Anandpur Sahib seige and helped bring victory, preserving the future of Sikhs.

Unyielding as a child and headstrong as a teenager, hers is a story of valour, might, resilience, and the fearless Sikh spirit.

I appreciate learning about Sikhism and this particular period of Indian history through Kharbanda's book.

The book is empathetic in its writing and Kharbanda never blames Islam for the persecution. She also highlighted instances when Muslims helped Sikhs.

I loved reading Lioness of Punjab as a South Asian, learning about a hero I had no idea about. Mai Bhago's story will be inspirational to all girls and boys.

Thank you @yalibooks for my copy.

Too often women who turned the tides of war and had a major impact on our history have been woefully underrepresented, their stories and legacies buried in the annals of history and left to turn to dust.

With Lionness of Punjab Anita Jari Kharbanda brings to light the story of one such woman, Sikh martyr Mai Bhago. While her memory lives on as a Saint of Sikkhism, the story of her life and legacy remains largely excluded from the written record.

Parts of the story, particularly those related to her childhood and personal life, were re-imaged based on the life the author believed she may have lived. I was especially impressed that her characterization in these parts blended so well with what we know to be true.

The child Mai Bhago who trained in secret and wrestled with the village boys could easily become the woman who led 40 deserters back to their Guru and led an ambush against the army of the Mughal Emperor Auraungzeh, saving her Guru and allowing him to complete the Guru Granth Sahib Ji which became the main tenets of Sikkhism.

Of particular note is the end of the novel which details other noteworth Sikh women, the Kaurs, who following the example of Mai Bhago continued to fight the injustices around them. For a woman who fought so hard for what she believed in, there could be no greater honor than being remembered so fiercely by the women who came after her.

The language was easy and engaging, I learned so much about not just Mai Bhago but about Sikh culture, religion and the uphill battles they fought for what they believed in in the face of violent oppression. A lesson from the past that feels just as relevant today as it was 300 years ago.

Nice YA historical and was new to the Mai Bhago and really enjoyed the story. I'm curious to see this author's future works and I want to see more from her.

This book is great. It deals with heavy themes like war and grief and it felt really raw. The writing was beautiful and immersive, it's a pretty quick read.

This was an inspiring historical fiction YA based on the real life of Mai Bhago, a Sikh woman warrior from the early 1700s India. This book was very well written. I was hooked from the first chapter and loved the way the story unfolded. I appreciated Mai Bhango's development of how she became the incredible woman who lead men. This book was very eye-opening and very interesting.

I tried SO HARD to like this book, I really did. And I appreciate Mai Bhago as an invaluable part of not just Sikh but Punjabi history that deserved a book to champion her voice. But I'm sorry because maybe this was just not for me, but my attention flagged, the dialogue was stilted, and the chunks in between that constituted the main character's inner monologue were just that- little more than chunks. I am so so damn sad I couldn't like this novel.

An interesting story, but slightly awkward execution.

I’d never heard of Mai Bhago before, and I know almost nothing about Sikh history, so from that perspective this was a really interesting story – I loved all the historical and cultural details about rural life in pre-colonial India, which the author has clearly researched a lot.

However, the writing was fairly clunky and didn’t always flow very smoothly: despite the amount of death and grief in the story, I struggled to feel much emotion towards any of the characters (except for in one particular memorable scene). I also found the way Punjabi words and phrases were incorporated to feel slightly awkward: they were often just dropped into the text in a way that felt unnatural (‘Your salwar-kameez is soni’), or translated immediately, disrupting the flow of the narrative ('wildflowers… flashing petals brighter than a deeva, a lamp').

Mai Bhago herself also wasn’t my favourite, and I wonder if I might have got on a bit better with the book if it hadn’t been in first person. Her character seemed simultaneously somewhat inconsistent, with her changing her position on certain things seemingly from page to page, but also quite flat – she doesn’t develop much, and I honestly couldn’t tell how old she was supposed to be by the end. I also didn’t love the aggressive ‘not like other girls’ overtones in the first half: though that message is slightly softened by the end, particularly after Mai Bhago gets married herself, she never really makes an effort to understand the positions of the women around her who do want to get married and who value beauty/enjoy cooking and sewing/etc.

CW: deaths of loved ones; grief; murder; war; attempted sexual assault

THE LIONESS OF PUNJAB is a powerful and engaging historical fiction about the life of Mai Bhago. She is a strong female lead and won me over from the first page! From a young teen to a powerful, determined young woman, the love and pride she held for her family was tangible. What an inspiring warrior! The author does a phenomenal job spinning this beautiful story of resilience and sacrifice with historical facts. I highly recommend this for young readers.
Disclosure: I received a digital advanced reader copy of THE LIONESS OF PUNJAB.

This was an interesting historical fiction about a figure I knew nothing about beforehand. But I found the beginning really slow and the ending really fast.

This was such a great book! I've learnt a lot about wars during the Mughal empire in school , but this is my first time reading a story about the wars from a common person + warrior's perspective, and the author has done an amazing job!

💫 The writing! It was so good, I never felt like keeping the book down! It flowed really well and the first pov narration really took me into Mai Bhago's mind!
💫 I liked all the character interactions in this book. I felt that they were very realistic (including the actual words used! Her mom calls her and her siblings as bandar (Hindi word meaning monkeys), and this was so reminscent of my parents calling me a monkey xD)
💫 The romance! This wasn't a huge part of the book, but it was so sweet 😭
💫 This book has the theme of following your dreams regardless of society's stereotypes, I personally loved that
💫 .... and I'm still crying about the epilogue, it was the best

TWs - war, violence, blood/gore, death on the battlefield, family members dying in a war, stereotypical expectations of women

---- thank you Netgalley for an advanced copy ----

A unique historical novel that introduced me to both the Sikh religion and some of their history. Not much is known about the early life of Mai Bhago, a warrior saint in Sikhism, so Kharbanda uses her imagination regarding events but she tries to stay true to the historical setting. Obviously war in the early 1700s was bloody; this is a violent book, filled with much killing, so it's not for every middle grade reader. I can't say I enjoyed the book for this reason but I did appreciate the history and culture.
Updated review: I just realized this was supposed to be a YA book, and that does seem appropriate based on the plot, but then the writing was more like a middle grade book. I do think it might be hard to find the right audience for this title.

Unconventional. And terrific storytelling. I at first didn't get the storyline but the blurb was really helpful. Any time I was lost, it guided me to which part of the story I was. The character formation was top notch.

Lioness of Punjab by Anita Jari Kharbanda is a YA historical fiction novel that imagines the life of legendary Sikh warrior, Mai Bhago. The book focuses on her teenage years, where she spends her days doing chores and yearning to train to be a soldier. She wants to be accepted for who she is, fight for her Guru and protect her people, and will stop at nothing until she can do what she feels like she was born to do— become a warrior.

I liked the fierceness and determination of Mai Bhago. This book thoughtfully challenges gender roles and I cheered whenever Mai Bhago called someone out for their misogyny. I appreciate this book for its main message— don’t let anyone stop you from being yourself and fight for what you believe in. However, while I love the message and concept of the book, the rest of the book didn’t work for me.

There is way too much telling and not enough showing in this book. It’s difficult to keep track of the passage of time, and some chapters or sections end abruptly or don’t flow well. The parts describing Mai Bhago’s training and battles were interesting and well done, but everything else was boring and felt very surface level. Most chapters move too fast and feel more like a summary of a life than an exploration of someone’s character.

I enjoyed the beginning and cheered for the MC whenever she called out people for criticizing her, but the more I read, the less I liked her. There wasn’t a lot of character development, but this could be a result of the writing style. Some of the relationships seemed shallow and weren’t believable, especially the main romantic relationship. There’s also a lack of emotion in the book, which is surprising because many characters end up going to war and don’t return. A lot of these deaths are skimmed over, which made me feel nothing for these characters.

If it weren’t for the graphic descriptions of violence, I could see this working better as a middle grade book because the writing feels better suited for a much younger audience. I’m not Punjabi or Sikh so I can’t speak to the cultural references or the representation of this historical figure. I’m also not the intended audience for this book so maybe actual teens will enjoy this more than I did.

Thank you NetGalley and Yali Books for providing me with an ARC to review.

Write Voicers!

What's up, what's up, WHAT'S UP!

I'm just over here living life, and I hope y'all are too. I don't know if y'all heard yet (although it was posted on a previous blog post), but I've had my second short story published in Issue 7 of The Pandemic Post! That's right, ya girl is PUBLISHED. So, do me a favor, and go ahead and order a copy for these two reasons: 1) ALL the profits go to F12 People's Kitchen and 2) you'll be supporting me.

But, as excited as I am, this blog post isn't about me. It's about Lioness of Punjab by Anita Kharbanda, (which you should also buy, and I'll tell you why). So, let's jump into the review!



What's the novel about?

Lioness of Punjab is about Bhag Bhari, a thirteen-year-old girl who grows into the fierce warrior known today as Mai Bhago. From the day she was born, Bhag Bhari wanted nothing more than to fight for the Guru, her people, and her beliefs. Even when her Mataji (mother) told her it was unladylike. Even when her Pitaji (father) told her that her dharam (duty) was to care for the home. But destiny doesn't care about the naysayers, and when you feel it calling to you, you have to answer. So Bhag Bari does just that. She trains with her cousin Gurdas, and eventually her Pitaji as well, to fight and becomes the most skilled warrior in her village. And, when the time comes, she answers the call to war, leading forty soldiers back to Guru Gobind Singh Ji's side.

Now, normally after telling you what the novel is about, I would jump into what themes are present in the book and then tell you what I liked about it. But in the case of Lioness of Punjab a lot of what I liked about the book coincides with the themes. So, this time, I've combined the two sections together. (Please don't hate me.) So, here it is, the main theme of the book and what I liked about it:



What themes are present in the book? And what did you like about the book?

I had a hard time deciding what theme to discuss for this book because there were sooooo many good choices. But, in the end, I narrowed it down to one: If your purpose is clear to you, then you should follow it.


If your purpose is clear to you, then you should follow it.
While I was reading this book, the words that kept coming back to my mind were destiny, purpose, duty, and expectations, among others. All of these words have one thing in common: they refer to a person's place in society.

I don't know much about Sikh culture, but what I gathered about it from reading this book is that one's dharam, or duty is determined at birth. And, as with most societies, in the year that the book takes place in, men and women follow traditional gender norms where women tend to the home and children while men go to work, whether that work be selling items in a marketplace or heading off to war.

The majority of the book discusses this through Bhag Bhari's upbringing, where she mentions several times that she wants to be a warrior, but her family is against it because it is not what a woman is supposed to do. One of my favorite scenes that embodies this takes place in Chapter Four when Bhag's cousin Gurdas is training her to wield a sword, and her father appears.

-------

Pitaji balled his hands into tight fists. "Gurdas, how can you call yourself a veerji if you are training your bhen to die?" Pitaji stormed over to me and grabbed me by the ear to drag me home.

I was utterly humiliated. "Yes, because I am a female, I cannot die in battle. I suppose you think a woman's life is more important than a man's!" I wasn't making much sense. I yanked myself free of Pitaji's grip...

-----

I will admit, when I first read this scene, I was a bit confused about Bhag Bhari's words as well. I actually thought it was a typo.

But, after I thought about it, I understood her thoughts exactly. When Bhag Bari points out that her Pitaji thinks a woman's life is more important than a man's, she's saying that men and women aren't treated equally in their society. She's saying that if a man can give his life up for the Guru, then a woman should be able to do the same. That she should be able to do this same. This book may take place in a different time period, but the sentiment gives full-on Disney 1998 Mulan vibes because the themes are so similar. (Both feature strong women who take on the gender norms in their communities and come out better for it, while also maintaining their version of what beauty means to them.)

Throughout Lioness of Punjab there is NEVER a moment where Bhag Bhari questions who she is or what she's supposed to do with her life, and this was something that I really appreciated in the novel.

Although there were certain points where Bhag Bhari's words become repetitive (and she becomes slightly annoying), I like that she never falters in her conviction. Which, is definitely the main point of the book. You see, there are many sections where she talks about how being a Sikh is about honor and duty. And being a warrior coincides with that. In Chapter Five, she specifically says:

"I will never stop wanting to fight. That is what I was created for. Our people are at risk of being annihilated, and every day, more men die fighting. And I will never want to marry if I cannot take up arms to protect us." I felt unsure of myself, but I held my head high and feigned conviction. "If Mamaji and Gurdas die, then we all deserve the pain we will feel since we did not fight with honor alongside them."

And this scene is probably the most accurate way to describe her entire personality throughout the book. And it is because of her personality that she does exactly what she's meant to do: Become a warrior.

As far as messages in books go, I think this one is perfect, especially for young girls today who might be into activities or professions that are male-dominated (such as STEM) and may have parents, family members, or friends who try to dissuade them against joining such activities or professions.

We need books like this for women, especially those told from a perspective that is not our own. Besides, we all know that girls run the world. (I had to make that Beyoncé reference fit somehow, lol.)

Now, I could go on and on about other instances in the book where this occurs, but I think it's best if you just read it for yourself. That said, let's jump into what I didn't like about this book/wished the author did differently.



What, if anything, did you dislike or wish the author would've done differently?

There were three things that I wish were different about the book. First, I wish there was a glossary, second I had issues with names, and, third, the description on the back of the book was misleading.

There was no glossary and I was trying to figure out what a kirpan is/was. Luckily, I came across [a] handy video.


Glossary
There were a ton of terms in the book (like Mataji, Pitaji, veere, dhi, dharam, kirpan etc.) and, though they added a lot of depth to the story, I wish there had been a glossary. There were several times where I forgot what the terms meant, and I had to either use context clues or go back to another section of the book to remember what it meant, and a glossary would have been helpful to have.


Names
There were also a lot of names in the book, some of which I didn't feel were important because we only see them mentioned once or twice. My personal opinion is that if a character isn't essential to the plot, they don't need a name. However, and I didn't ask this question in the interview with Anita Kharbanda, but I imagine that—as in most religions—names are sacred. And so, perhaps the extra names were added to show respect to those characters, even if they weren't essential to the plot.

Also, on names, I don't know why, but I got annoyed that Nidhan Singh was always referred to by his full name instead of just Nidhan. And, though I'm sure this is also to show respect to the character and/or the person the character was named after, the same thing is not done with any of the other main characters.


Description of Book
When I first read the description for Lioness of Punjab, I thought the book was going to take us on a journey with Mai Bhago and the forty soldiers. Essentially, I thought it would be the storytelling of Redeployment by Phil Klay (i.e. what went on during the journey) meets the format of Peak by Roland Smith (i.e. told chapter by chapter) meets Sikh culture. And, that's not what this book is.

Instead, this book strikes me as a fictional slice-of-life-type memoir. Think Scaachi Koul's One Day We'll All Be Dead and None of This Will Matter, except told in chronological order, partially fictional, and add death. (Sorry that I don't have better comparisons, I haven't been reading a lot of memoirs lately.)

In essence, the story that I read wasn't the story that I expected. This, isn't necessarily a bad thing, just that it's a bit misleading if you're looking for a journey-type story as opposed to a slice-of-life story.



How many stars would you give this book and why?

I struggled between giving this book three stars or four because I couldn't decide on whether or not I was disappointed that the story I was promised wasn't necessarily what I got. However, Kharbanda's unique voice and captivating writing paired with a badass main character who sticks with her convictions, along with themes relevant to today's world really boosts the score. In other words, I really liked this book despite the negatives, so I'm awarding it four stars.


More Information

Anita Jari Kharbanda is the author of Lioness of Punjab. Her book will be available in bookstores on September 17, 2022.

If you want to hang out with her virtually, she'll be chatting with Daman on @11questionpod about all things Lioness of Punjab in September.

If you want to meet Anita in person, her book launch party will be held at Whose Books in the Oak Lawn area of Dallas on September 24, 2022, from 2:00-4:00 PM CST.

There will be swag, treats, copies of Lioness of Punjab for purchase, an author signing, and special reading. And, even if you aren't local, you can still attend the reading virtually! There is literally no reason to miss it if you're free between those hours.

But, if you want to come in person and absolutely can't make it to the launch event, don't fret. There will be a second book signing event at the Half Price Books Flagship Store in DFW on October 9, 2022, from 1:00-3:00 PM CST.

If you still can't get enough of Anita, you can check out her website.

If you enjoyed this book review and want to know more about her, check out this interview.

What are your thoughts on Lioness of Punjab? Tell me in the comments. And, remember to like and subscribe to The Write Voice. Thanks!

The Lioness of Punjab is a historical short novel that tells the story of Mai Bhago, a 17th century Sikh warrioress who rallied a group of deserters back to the Guru’s army to fight against the Mughal Empire.

Mai Bhago is the eldest sister and a tomboy, who loves to wrestle with her brothers and cousins (to the dismay of her parents). But the Sikh communities are not safe from the emperor in Delhi, whom they have fought with for generations to protect their people. Mai Bhago/Baug Kaur is passionate and determined to learn how to use a sword just like the men who go to battle, feeling that it is her destiny.

I love her family’s eventual acceptance of her need to train in combat, the scene of her brothers helping her wrap a man’s turban around her head, her realization of what ‘beautiful’ meant to her. How that despite her acceptance of some gender roles, she completely obliterates others.

Through this book we are painted a richly colorful portrait of Punjab life in the 16-1700s, smells and textures and tastes come alive. We are also presented with a passionate immersion into the Sikh faith. While I personally may not understand that kind of religious devotion, the main characters dedication shows through, and gave me a look at a faith and culture I was previously unfamiliar with.

Overall, this was a touching story of sacrifice and faith in the face of great loss, with a solid historical background. I enjoyed learning about this period of history and the novel was short enough to finish in two evenings. It’s not a dramatic page-turner, more of an embellished biography and in that capacity it makes for an exciting read.

Inspired by the real life story of a Sikh woman warrior in early 1700s India, this book was entertaining and educational at the same time. I've learnt a lot about Sikhism, while the beautiful descriptions of food and clothes made me nostalgic of the time I spent in the Punjab!

I've never read a story with a Sikh MC so that was really interesting. The writing was a bit simple, more MG level than YA.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC.